60 Degrees Pharmaceuticals Fast Tracked For Malaria Drug

WASHINGTON—60 Degrees Pharmaceuticals (60P) has received Fast Track designation from the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the investigation of Tafenoquine for prevention of malaria in adults. In December, 60P submitted a New Drug Application (NDA) for the use of Tafenoquine to prevent malaria in adults traveling to areas where the disease is prevalent.

60P entered into a cooperative research and development agreement with the U.S. Army Medical Materiel Development Activity (USAMMDA) in 2014 to develop Tafenoquine as a weekly prophylactic drug for the prevention of malaria. Since malaria is the top infectious disease threat to U.S. Military service members overseas, the military maintains a robust anti-malarial drug development effort through internal research and commercial partnerships. This NDA submission is a culmination of over 30 years of research and development with the U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, from the discovery of Tafenoquine at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research to the current collaboration between 60P and USAMMDA.

“Finding acceptable drugs to safeguard travelers and deployed military personnel against malaria is a real problem,” said Geoffrey Dow, Ph.D., CEO of 60 Degrees Pharmaceuticals. “We see Fast Track Designation as a next step toward marketing this product with a convenient weekly dosing regimen in the United States, and eventually around the world. It is our continued belief our dossier will receive priority review, thereby expediting the review of Tafenoquine. This better positions 60P for a priority review voucher, thus assisting 60P to acquire needed resources to launch Tafenoquine.”

A recent analysis of five clinical trials to assess the safety and tolerability of Tafenoquine has been published in Travel Medicine and Infectious Disease. The authors concluded that Tafenoquine appeared to be safe and well tolerated when the anticipated clinical regimen was administered. In all five studies, the majority of adverse events were mild or considered unrelated to the study drug.